I apologize for not getting this out sooner. Been busy being an auntie to a dear friend's 9 months old kid, then I got stuck with a little writer's block. I got to warn you guys that I'm starting my LAST semester in university next week so update might be less frequent, but don't worry I won't abandon the story.

ButterflyMissy: Gotta read and see what happens :)

SkyBlue: Will Sage appears? Wait and see.

Enjoy the chapter and don't plan my murder. :)

Time stops right here. The second lasts an entire lifetime. Gail's heart beats like there is no tomorrow. This is it, Gail thinks to herself. There is no turning back once Gail bravely leans her head toward her target: Holly's tender lips.

A Phish-like ringtone rings and brings Gail back to a cold reality.

Gail's eyes pop wide open and her heart stops beating for a second. Shit. Shit. Is she really about to forsake one of the most important people in her life for Holly? Is she falling that hard for Holly? There is no way Holly feels the same way for her. She is a cold bitch and Holly really is just being nice to her as she always is to everyone else. Right? She pushes herself up and stumbles to get her cellphone out of her pocket. She fails to notice Holly's head bowing down in frustration.

"Sage?"

"Gail, get your ass over here! Your mother is right out by the door. I'm not answering, so come and get her out of there!" Sage whispers rapidly and hangs up immediately.

"Sage? Sage?" Gail looks at her phone to see indication that Sage already hung up on her. She sighs deeply and grabs her things.

"I gotta rescue Sage from the wrath of my mother," Gail mutters and runs off without waiting for Holly's answer. Truthfully, she wants to avoid Holly as she is struggling with holding her feelings back. Her inner armor is cracking and she does not like it a bit. She was raised to be a Peck and that means no one can get past her layers of shield. How the hell did Holly manage to get through all that?

Gail spots her mother donned in an impeccable navy blue Superintendent uniform and standing confidently in front of Gail's dorm room. How did she manage to know where her room was in first place? Gail growls as she assumes Steve's guilt in this situation. A surely baked guy lazes by Gail and freezes when he realizes a police officer is in the hallway. Gail snickers as he walks backwards and slithers through the stairway door.

"Gail Peck" Elaine appears in front of Gail and she gets startled for a second, but regains her composure. Gail straightens herself up Peck style and keeps her face stoic.

"What are you doing here, Mother?"

"You never answer your phone so I was compelled to come here so we can talk."

"Well, let's go outside then."

"What about your room? I know your roommate is in there but she isn't answering the door."

"No surprise. She probably doesn't recognize you so she didn't want to answer the door."

"I'm police. She should've answered out of courtesy unless she has something to hide."

"Mother, just stop. Let's go."

"Why don't you introduce her to me? I should at least know her name."

"Mother. Stop. I would like to keep my family life and college life separate please. I don't want to scare her off because I'm was born in a police family."

"That's something to be proud of, not ashamed."

Teenaged Gail is confused about what is happening around her. To her. She is at the police station and she knows she is in deep trouble, but an officer took off the handcuffs and allowed her to sit on the bench and walked away without saying anything to her. She even notices a face of contempt on the officer as he turned around. She knows she got caught, but she has a good reason and she just wants to bring justice to the people who are being ignored. They deserve answers and she is willing to risk it all for them. She is a Peck after all and the name is synonymous with justice.

Gail spots her mother in her Sergeant uniform and approaches with a stern face. She stands upright from the chair and is hoping her mother will tell her what is going on.

"Mum, what is happening? I'm sorry I got in trouble..."

"Gail, you are very fortunate your grandfather has not retired yet. He has to pull some strings to get you out of this debacle, so let's get out of here before those people see you. We can't have this getting out to the public. "

"What? But I got caught. I am the one who did this."

"No, you are not. We got this handled, the blame will be put on that delinquent who was there."

"Brenly? But he didn't do anything wrong! It was all me! I'm going to talk to Officer Shaw and tell him the truth."

"No. You are a Peck and you represent us. You cannot have this on your record."

"Peck means justice right? Aren't we supposed to serve justice?"

"You got that right. We ARE justice. That means we cannot do wrong, no matter what it takes. You better sit down right there and repeat that to yourself until you get it nailed in your head. Just stay away from that boy and his family. We don't need any more complications out of your mess. Remember what happened to your cousin Jason? That can happen to you if you don't get yourself together and shut your mouth."

Elaine gives Gail a threatening look before walking out of the building. Gail breaks down on the chair and puts her head in her hands. Is this what being a Peck really means? If this so-called justice is, what she is supposed to uphold when she becomes a police officer like her whole family? She is not sure she wants to be a part of them anymore. For the first time in her life, she feels ashamed of her family name.

"Well, I am not proud of being a Peck."

Elaine squeezes her eyes in frustration and puts her fists on her hips. "When will you grow up, Gail? You're an adult already, so it's past time for you to get past what happened. This is your reality and you can't get away from it, so you might as well step up and be the best Peck you can be."

Gail scoffs. "Be the best Peck? I'm not sure I want to."

"Gail, I don't have time to fight with you. Just come home after your classes on Friday."

"Friday? I thought I'm required just for dinner on Sunday?"

"There is a party we need to go together as a family on Saturday evening."

Ah, there it is. The real reason why Eliane Peck bothered to visit Gail. Just to maintain the family's status in Toronto politics.

"Oh so you need me for a public appearance… got it."

Eliane breathes out a heavy sigh and disregards Gail's comment. "I'll talk with Steve about picking you up. Be sure to tell him what time you will be done. I'll see you at home on Friday."

Elaine pats Gail's shoulder before leaving to get back on her busy schedule. Gail stares at her mother walking away. She tries to remember if her mother was always like that. Has she worn rose colored glasses when she was younger? She can remember clearly when she first lost faith in her family, but did that mean she was blind growing up? She is not sure if she really wants to know the truth.

She turns around to the front door to her room, but she does not enter. She knows Sage probably is waiting for her to come in and get update about what happened just now. Sage will try to console her and tell her that her mother is crazy and wrong like usual. Gail knows her mother is not perfect, but she is still blood after all. What does that make Gail? Will she grow up to be a cold blooded bitch looking out for herself? She may keep most people at long distance from herself, but she certainly does not want to screw people over to gain benefits for herself. If she cannot be a Peck, then who is she?

This is becoming too much for her to think and feel right now. Gail decides to walk away and avoid facing Sage at least for now. Right now, she could go for a shot of tequila... or a few.

Gail is sitting with her knees up to her chin, and arms wrapped around herself as if she is protecting herself from the ugliness out in the world. Her head leans against the passenger window as she watches raindrops splattering in front of her eyes. Steve throws a glance every now and then as he drives toward Gail's dorm. The family dinner ends up a huge fiasco, and Gail just want to be in her bed hidden away from everyone. She squeezes her eyes shut as she tries to push her parents' harsh words out of her mind.

"Gail, you need to take your education seriously. Change your major to Criminal Justice."

"What can you do with languages? All that will get you is either interpreting or teaching. That will get you nowhere. That's not what Pecks strive for."

"You think you can be fully independent just because you have that scholarship? What if you lose it? What will you do then?"

"You're only nineteen. You still don't know anything about this world."

Gail becomes so frustrated she didn't even bother staying for dessert, and that is her favorite part of any meal. She simply stands up and commands Steve to drop her off back at her dorm and walks out of the house. Her clothes are heavy and soaked wet from the rain because she forgot to check for weather and didn't have an umbrella. She is too proud to go back inside and grab one from the closet and she is not sure if she can handle seeing her parents without blowing up to be honest. She tries to fix her clammy hair as Steve pulls up in front of her dorm building.

They both remain quiet and tension is sky high between them in the car. Steve fiddles the steering wheel with his hands while Gail tries to fix the stubborn cowlick out of her face. Steve looks at Gail and loses the silent struggle between them on who is stubborn enough to not say something first.

"Look… I know it's hard to live up to the Ex-Peckstations, but-"

"Don't. Just don't. You have no idea what it is like to be me." Gail snaps. She cannot even look at her brother in the eye right now. She is just too angry. At her parents. At her brother. Even at herself.

"You're the golden boy and you know it, Steve. I'm the screw up because I'm not like all of you. Sometimes I wonder if I'm adopted."

"Gail, I'm not expecting anything from you, little sister. I'm sorry for not saying anything at the table. I just…" Steve tries to come up with something to make it better for Gail but comes up empty.

"I know. I'm just exhausted. I just want to be left alone so I can figure out who I am. Who I am supposed to be without everyone telling me."

"Well, stick with what you want to learn then. If it's languages and stuff then so be it. Hell, if you want to be a starving artist, then so be it!"

Gail chuckles a little and punches Steve's arm.

"You're in college, so it's your time to just go out and explore. Figure out what you want to do on your time. Chill with whoever you want. Find some gorgeous ladies to charm and get laid!" Steve jabs Gail's side with his elbow.

"God, you're so simple minded. Are you really sure you're a Peck?"

"Get out of my car. I'll see you sometime soon and we'll just have couple beers and maybe play pool?"

"Sure, I'll kick your ass and take away all of your money."

Steve laughs and puts out a fist. Gail rolls her eyes, gives him a fist bump, and gets out of the car. She gives him a dirty face and waves as he drives away. Steve can be such a wuss in front of their parents, but Gail knows he always has her back and secretly roots for her behind their parents' back. She contemplates Steve's brotherly advice as she wanders her way to the dorm room she shares with Sage. His advice is pretty lame, but the first part hit home. Maybe it is time for her to seriously sit down with Sage and actually talk. See where she really stands with Holly. If nothing is really happening between them, then maybe… just maybe Gail will have a shot. That is if Holly is even remotely interested. God, things between Holly and Gail are just weird. After the near kiss last week, Gail avoids her as much as possible and only communicates with her through e-mails about their presentation. The presentation went okay on Friday, but Gail ran away from Holly as soon as the class session ended, citing a family weekend as excuse. She really need to fixes that and just stop pushing Holly away.

Gail arrives at the door and takes a deep breath. She mentally pumps herself up and tells herself that she's got this. She enters the room and all lights are turned off except for a little lamp on the nightstand next to the bunk beds.

"Sage?" Gail whispers as she sneaks over. She notices not just one, but two heads on the pillows on Sage's bed. The straight black haired head near to the nightstand obviously belongs to Sage, but who's the other one? Gail decides to peeks over quietly. The head is full of beautiful chocolate waves and a mole appears right by the ear. Gail's heart breaks in uncountable pieces as she realizes it is indeed Holly sleeping in the bed with Sage.

Fuck.